VIDEO: Champion cyclist could have lived, says coroner

A champion cyclist who collapsed and died while out riding his bike could have been saved if doctors had diagnosed an undetected heart condition, a coroner has ruled.

Fitness instructor Peter Hinchliffe, aged 33, collapsed and died from an undiagnosed heart defect while cycling close to Doncaster Racecourse.

Pete Hinchliffe

Family members told an inquest that specialists at a private hospital in Sheffield missed opportunities to diagnose the condition and give Peter potentially life-saving treatment during tests conducted in the months prior to his death.

Recording a narrative conclusion, coroner Fred Curtis agreed there had been ‘delays’ in Mr Hinchliffe’s treatment and added his death could have been ‘avoided’.

He told Doncaster Coroners’ Court: “Mr Hinchliffe died from a natural condition that had not been diagnosed or treated.

“Had the investigative process been completed more expediently, and a defibrillator implanted, it is probable he could have anticipated a reasonable expectation of life.”